


The Strength of Adira

by KuHana



Series: Rewriting History [1]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Adira to the Rescue, Angst, Episode: s01e17 Queen for a Day, Gen, Hurt Varian (Disney), This kid needs to take better care of himself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:14:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27744319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KuHana/pseuds/KuHana
Summary: Adira always listens to her hunches.
Relationships: Adira & Varian (Disney), Quirin/Ulla (Disney: Varian and the Seven Kingdoms)
Series: Rewriting History [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2054796
Comments: 57
Kudos: 105





	The Strength of Adira

Adira’s brows pinched together, watching as the snow slowly inched up her legs the deeper she ventured into Corona’s territory. A blizzard, so unlike any other, plagued the Sun Kingdom, turning it into an icy wasteland. 

Had she been an inexperienced traveler, her body would have been buried under the snow a long time ago, bones freezing and blood cooling. Death by blizzard. Unsavory and beneath someone of her title. 

Adira pursed her lips and gave her shoulders an experimental roll, the weight of the black rock sword pushing down on her skin. Originally, Adira planned to skip over Corona all together, not wanting to subject herself to the strange looks from villagers and scrutiny from the King and Queen. 

But then she got wind of strange weather phenomena and her internal instincts took over. The need to check in on her brother and nephew outranked all else. So here she was, trekking through knee-deep snow, during the biggest storm of the year. 

A few flakes found their way onto her cheek and into her hair, melting intently. The water left behind smudged parts of her face paint and when it started to drip down her chin, Adira whipped it away with the back of her hand. 

It wasn’t until a few more steps that her foot caught on something soft. Adira arched an eyebrow, experimentally removing her foot, and watched as the lump of snow shifted. 

_Oh no…_

Kneeling, the warrior carefully brushed the snow aside and hauled out the small body of her nephew, goggles cracked, hanging off of his nose, cloak soaking wet, lips purple. 

Adira frowned and shifted the boy closer to her warm body, his legs slung over her lap, his head tucked under her shawl, protected from the harsh wind and vicious downpour. 

“And here I thought you were supposed to be the smart one,” Adira spoke, voice strong. She took his staff and satchel, slinging them over her shoulder, before finally standing up. 

Thankfully, Quirin’s home wasn’t too far away, the pair reaching the half-destroyed building in record time. Adira kicked the door open, uncaring for the way its hinges creaked and knob twisted. 

First things first. Varian’s soaking clothes were carefully stripped away and after a little bit of snooping, Adira dressed him in dry clothes a size too big. His goggles were traded in for warm blankets, the fabric wrapping around the boy’s wiry frame like a second skin. 

When Adira was satisfied, she got to work brewing a warm glass of water. When her nephew finally came too, he’d need a way to defrost his insides. Warm water was the best option. 

_… when he came to._ The warrior hummed. Hopefully, he wasn’t out there too long. 

While the pot of water began to boil, Adira pushed her shawl off and took to whipping away what remained of her face paint. The coils in her hair were dismantled, finding a home on the countertop while her locks dried. 

_It’s been a while since I’ve looked like this,_ Adira thought when she caught a glimpse of herself in the window. Her face was free of any red dye, revealing the hidden half of her cheek. Long, milky strands drizzling down past her shoulders, stopping just above her hip. They swayed, glistening under the grey sky. 

Adira quietly reached up, threading her fingers in with her hair. Not a knot insight, the pristine color contrasting with her deep brown orbs. 

She exhaled slowly, hand falling away. 

The pot sizzled, blaring to life. Adira turned, shutting the stove off, and poured the water into a hand-made (impressive) mug. The steaming water was set on a counter, close to where Varian lay. Satisfied, and confident that her nephew would recover soon, she set off to explore. 

Years ago, when Quirin met Ulla and moved out to Corona’s outskirts, Adira made it a point to visit her brother every year or so. Ulla was a wonderful girl, eccentric, full of energy, an aspiring alchemist, and had a heart of gold. She was a good fit for Quirin, balancing out his stoicism.

Hell, Ulla even managed to befriend Hector, the third member of the Brotherhood, and not someone people generally got along with. Hector was rash, feral, hostile, territorial, but Ulla was determined to break through his barriers. She understood that, despite everything, Hector was an important person to Quirin, so getting along with the wild man was a must. 

Adira let a smile slip when a particular memory bubbled to the surface. 

  
  
  


_Hector stretched his body out, bones popping, the sun shining off of his black hair, the grass brushing down his exposed arms. His loyal bearcats sat not too far away, slumbering, curled up beside their rhino companion._

_Quirin smirked, eyeing the wild man. “Brother, have you nothing better to do?”_

_“Naah, this is a luxury I’m more than happy to indulge in.”_

_“Luxury?” Adira chuckled, legs crossed, seating across from both men. “Funny, I thought you took naps like this all the time. Sort of completes your, how did you put it, ‘aesthetic’.”_

_Hector stuck his tongue out, shamelessly, prompting the warrior to roll her eyes. Their antics brought out a giggle from Ulla, who had been busy doodling schematics in her worn-out sketchbook._

_“I have no idea how you guys get anything done, sometimes,” the alchemist snorted, resting a hand on her fiance’s elbow. “Though, I would be lying if I said Hector’s way wasn’t at least a little appealing.”_

_Hector shot Ulla a wink before yawning lazily._

_“Please, love, don’t encourage him,” Quirin begged, covering Ulla’s small hand with his larger one._

  
  
  
  


Adira shook her head, watching as the memory slowly disappeared from her mind’s eye. 

Varian's birth happened a good year into Quirin’s marriage, and as expected, both Adira and Hector attended the event, taking turns holding the baby in their arms, watching as little Varian babbled, small fingers reaching for Hector’s braids or Adira’s armor. 

And now, Quirin's kid was lying in the living room, suffering from hypothermia, body weak and thin. 

How time does fly. 

Speaking of, where was Quirin? Adira expected to see her brother frantically looking for his kid. Instead, what greeted her was an abandoned town, half destroyed by the black rocks. 

Worry slowly started to crawl up the warrior’s throat, but she pushed it down, refusing to fall victim to assumptions. Adira checked each room in the house, starting from the main level and working her way up. Her search didn’t yield much. 

Adira was about to give up and return to Varian, deciding to wait until he’d wake up to ask questions, but then a door, hidden in the hardest corner, caught her eye. 

She eased the wooden thing aside and descended, hand flexing. Once her foot hit the bottom, a strong wave of foreboding bubbled up in her stomach. 

“Odd. Oh-” 

A small, grey blur darted out from under a table, hissing when Adira tried to move forward. A raccoon, of all things, with its tail, bushed up and fur standing on end. 

It looked like it was… protecting something? 

Adira bent down, watching as the creature’s eyes darkened. “Calm down,” she cooed, bringing her hand out, palm up, for the critter to sniff. “I’m not here to fight.” 

The raccoon hesitated, scraping his nails against the stone floor, but eventually gave in, pressing his nose to Adira’s palm. 

It took longer than needed, but the critter quickly lost his hostility, offering Adira an excited smile. 

“See?” The warrior returned the gesture, taking her hand back. “I’m friendly.” 

Her new friend chittered, frantically pulling on her sleeve, pointing a sharp claw over his shoulder. 

“You want me to follow?”

The raccoon nodded, letting her sleeve go to run deeper into the unknown. Frowning, but with nothing to lose, Adira followed. Slowly, chemicals and blueprints began to show up, littering the tables around the room. Broken glass decorated the floor, crunching under her boot, accompanying the various discarded gadgets. 

An underground laboratory. _This must be Varian’s domain._

The raccoon came to a stop in the middle of the room, pawing at something. Adira squinted, head tilted to the side to better understand what she was looking at. 

_What is that?_

The statue (?) was yellow in color, glowing a little, and see-through. Adira inched closer, brows pinched together, lips pursed, carefully inspecting the object when- was that a hand? 

The warrior’s eyes widened when she realized that the hand was attached to a body. A man, in his early fifties, dressed in a fur coat and farm clothes, one hand holding a letter, the other stretched out, grasping nothing. 

The more Adira inspected the man, the more the dread in her throat grew. 

_Quirin._

Her brother, the man she grew up with, who trained and protected her, who understood her, was suspended in a prison of stone. Frozen, balancing between the realm of life and death. 

“Oh, brother, what has happened to you.” 

Adira pressed her palm against the stone, hovering it over where Quirin’s heart was. Standing here, alone, with nothing to her name but her honor and loyalty, Adira made a promise. A silent vow, to the only family she’d ever known. 

The raccoon chittered softly, and when her hand slipped away, leaving the cold surface behind, she hoisted the critter up on her shoulder, leaving the horror behind in silence. 

Questions fought for control, warring within Adira like a pack of raging wolves. She wanted answers; why was her brother trapped? Was he alive? Why was her nephew out in the blizzard? What had led up to this? 

Pushing the door to the lab shut, concealing the images behind it, the warrior retreated to the living room. Varian’s condition hadn’t changed much, breathing still labored and skin still pale. The only noticeable change was the recession of purple from his lips. 

The raccoon squeaked, eyes growing big when he saw the kid. In the blink of an eye, the critter leaped off of her and ran over to Varian, curling up under his chin. 

Adira blinked, but after making sure her nephew was unharmed, took a seat next to the pair, legs crossed, hands on her knees. 

Leaving Varian behind would be foolish, and with his father trapped, there was no telling what lengths her nephew would fall to free him. He was a lot like Hector in that respect. 

She chanced a look at the sleeping child, reaching out to carefully cup his cheek. Thick, dark tendrils slipped over her nails, lush and dry. Varian’s pale skin contrasted with Adira’s own and his freckles stood out, dotting over his nose like little constellations. 

Adira sighed. “Looks like I'm stuck with you, kid.” 

Not that that was a bad thing.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> So I'm toying with maybe turning this into a multi-chapter story, where Adira takes Varian with her.
> 
> I plan to include some aspects of Varian and the Seven Kingdoms, along with Moon!Varian, if you guys would like to see that. 
> 
> Tell me what you think, but anyway, hope everyone enjoyed the story!


End file.
